The Island
by Adalmina
Summary: The fourth age is coming to an end and in The Undying Lands Thranduil feels he has no hope for the future and no purpose. Then he finds the mysterious Island and his life changes forever. Warnings: AU and slow moving! Might be Thranduil/OC in the future. R&R Please..
1. Fading

**_The first part of my new story The Island.. Very different from Resort Imladris,but I really felt like writing something more serious. Hope you like it!_**

**_And: As usual I do not own anything by Tolkien. I do however own the plot and the OCs I've created for this story._**

He had held his breath for almost too long this time. With two hard kicks he breached the surface and gasped for air. The warm salty water burned his eyes. He swam a short distance surrounded by a few brightly colored fishes that for some reason seemed to enjoy his company. Not many others did, he mused.

Finally he could put his feet down on white,soft sand and wade until he reached the shore. As always the sea had washed up a few new intricate seashells during the rainstorm last night. Calling it a storm might be an exaggeration though. The storms along with the rain here were always gentle, and had a tendency to hit them only nighttime. Practical indeed just as the never ending summer.

Last night the rhythmic rain had lulled him to sleep sitting in his favorite chair on the terrace. It had been a blessing of sort. He hadn't slept like that for a very long time and was likely not going to sleep like that for a while again. He sighed and pushed all of his long and dripping wet hair behind his shoulders.

He picked up an unusually big white seashell. It would make a lovely toy for his granddaughter, he thought. A bathing pool for her dolls. Then he remembered that she was already an adult and had been for a long time. He had not seen her for years. He let go of the shell and it landed in the sand in the same spot as he had picked it up.

He sighed and walked a few steps before he sat down next to two empty wine bottles he had finished on the beach a two days ago. As always he looked to the east over the sea for a while with sadness in his heart. Home. He thought.

Then he closed his eyes and laid down in the warm sand and let the sun dry his body while he listened to the seagulls shrieking from the top of the high white cliffs surrounding his own beach. His Kingdom. He could not help smiling at the irony of that.

He could hear footsteps now. He hadn't expected visitors today, but on the other hand he almost never did. He knew the footsteps well. He had known them since he was a little elfling, and they had not changed because the person making them hand not changed, not much anyway. He didn't bother getting up, he just turned his head and watched the silver haired elf lord walking down the path among the high slender pine trees, his white robes billowing in the light breeze.

"Thranduil. I did not find you in your house, so I made an educated guess you would be here." The tall elf cast a shadow over Thranduil's face. He sat up and faced the guest.

"Celeborn, I did not expect you. What have brought you here a day like this? Is it pity perhaps?"

"Don't talk like that. You know very well I have come to see a friend. You."

Celeborn didn't show any signs of being prepared to sit down in the sand so instead Thranduil got up on his feet.

"Let's go up to the house. Perhaps I even have something to offer. A bit of wine and something to eat."Celeborn nodded and Thranduil started walking up to the house.

Thranduil could not help feeling that this house was an empty shell. Too big for him, with a large number of empty rooms where dust was piling in the corners and the curtains and bed covers were slowly being digested by time itself. Rooms that he hadn't seen the inside of for years. A never ending number of closed doors in a long dimly lit empty hall.

When he came here he wanted to live like the king he thought he rightfully was, but in the end he had realized that it was all a lie. He was no king here, held no importance and had no purpose. Why keep up the charade?

"Why did you really come here cousin?" Thranduil sat down on the heavy wooden table in his combined study and bedroom and handed over a glass of red wine to Celeborn.

The elf lord hesitated to answer the question, looked around and sipped his wine instead. The room was in a state of chaos. Books, scrolls, maps and empty and half empty wine bottles covered almost every single surface. The only corner of the room that seemed to be in perfect order was where the enormous four poster bed stood. The bed was neatly made and both the bed linen and the bed curtains were white and clean. Maybe there was still hope left?

"Do you want me to send a maid over to take care of this?" Celeborn finally said let his gaze sweep across the room.

"So you came here to offer cleaning help?" Thranduil's laugh was dry and lifeless.

"No, but you can't go on like this. And you know it. You are beginning to fade, slowly but surely. Have you seen your reflection in a mirror lately? We are worried. Don't you understand?" Celeborn swallowed all the wine in his glass anxiously and looked at Thranduil.

Thranduil sighed. He could see nothing but true sincerity in Celeborn's eyes. Slowly he slid down from table and went to the other side of the room where he pulled down a sheet that had covered a full length mirror in a heavy wooden frame. He watched his reflection in the dusty glass for a long time. The elf that looked back at him was not the one he remembered. His body looked skinny and his long blond hair dull and dry but most of all his eyes had lost their glow. His gaze had once had the power to spellbind everyone it met, but now his eyes were just two empty bottomless blue pools. He let the sheet drop down over the mirror again.

"You see it yourself don't you?" Celeborn's voice sounded strangely distant.

"I'm still looking for a way back." Thranduil said.

"You know as well as I that there is no way back. And even if there was, there would be nothing left of the world we knew."

"Perhaps. But still I would feel more alive there than I ever done here. I do not belong here."

"Your son would miss you." Celeborn said quietly.

"I highly doubt that." Thranduil answered angrily. The last time he had met Legolas it had ended in a fight and after that he had not spoken to his son for years.

"He is worried too, and deep down you know it. He just can stand seeing you like this. It breaks his heart. Here in the Undying Lands fading doesn't have to be anyone's fate. There are plenty of things that could bring you joy here if you opened your heart. Just come with me and stay in our home in the city for a while. You are strong, and you know that. Inside of you is still the elf that lost both his father, two sons and his wife but still managed to live on and successfully rule a kingdom and fight for his people. "

Thranduil laughed.

"Well, perhaps that elf has finally realized that his time has finally come. That his life has been long enough already and that there is simply not enough to live for anymore."

"Do not ever speak like that again. Things will change for the better, This is not Middle Earth, and no one here have to have a fate like that." Celeborn said, but there was not enough strength in his voice to sound convincing.

Perhaps he had given up already, Thranduil didn't honestly care much but still he felt that metaphysical feeling that he had become more and more used to lately. He mentally shivered but kept quiet. He just waited for Celeborn to go. Eventually he would. Sometimes they would sit quiet for hours just sipping wine and after that the elf lord would leave and come to check upon him again a few months later . Thranduil knew the other elf's motivations, Celeborn meant well, but now all he wanted was to be alone.

"My offer still stands." Celeborn got up on his feet. "Come and stay with my family for a while."

"I'll think about it." Thranduil said half halfheartedly. They both knew he was lying.

"Until next time my friend." Unexpectedly Celeborn hugged him and when they parted Thranduil was sure he could see traces of tears in the other elf's eyes. Thranduil sighed.

"Until next time."

When Celeborn had left Thranduil suddenly felt an almost unnatural wave of fatigue hit him. It was only midday but the only thing he felt like doing was to crawl down between the sheets in his large bed and take a nap. Before he fell asleep he shortly thought about the fact that he was fading. He would die, sooner or later. The fading had already begun. Death had always seemed distant to him even if he had seen plenty of it around him during his long life. Strangely it didn't seem to bother him much, in fact he almost certainly would welcome death when it took him. He sighed and surrendered to a deep sleep.


	2. The Tree

Thranduil woke up about an hour later and felt anxious to get out of bed. He started searching for ink, some paper and a quill immediately. He had such a peculiar dream. He needed to draw it right away so he would not forget any of the details. In fact he hadn't felt this motivated to do anything for a very, very long time.

He pushed away some books to clear his cluttered table and started sketching. He began with the tree that had been central in his dream. It was like the giant oak tree had called out to him. Like it had something to tell him. All trees had stories to tell, but this one was different somehow. He just needed to find it, if it was real.

He started drawing the surroundings from his mind until he had a complete map. The map he had drawn showed a cape with high cliff faces and dense forests. It did seem familiar to him, but he could not point out the location exactly. He rolled out a larger map of Tol Eressea and started comparing the coastline with his map. For some reason he had a feeling that this place could not be far away for his home. Perhaps he had even been there before?

After only a few minutes of searching he had found the place. A remote cape about half a days walk from his home. He started looking for his travel clothes and realized that he probably hadn't used them in a while. He had not been outside of his property for a very long time. He hadn't felt the need or the desire to go anywhere. It had been him,his books and notes and occasionally his wine sending him into blissful oblivion.

He ripped away the sheet from the mirror once more and took a deep breath when he once again faced his reflection. He saw the same signs of fading again, but this time at least something was different. A spark had been ignited in his eyes. He could not even understand it himself. Why did a little dream have such an impact on him? Was he perhaps finally loosing it? But it didn't feel that way. Deep in his heart he knew. This was a good thing. Someone or something had reached out a helping hand to save him from drowning in the last minute. He just had to find the tree though, urgently.

The travel clothes hang loosely on his body. He had lost a lot of muscle, but it was the best he could do at the moment. He realized that most of the clothing in his wardrobe had turned brittle and fragile over the years. How long had he really lived in isolation? Hundreds of years, thousands? Celeborn probably knew but it was too late to ask now. He needed to get going if he wanted to make it to the oak before nightfall.

He packed lightly. Some food, the little he had at home, a bottle of water and a blanket for comfort since he would most probably sleep in the woods tonight. The thought made him smile. The woods here were nothing like his beloved Greenwood,but maybe sleeping outside high up in a tree would probably be pleasant. He opted to take his bow and arrows but he felt if was useless. The woods in The Undying Lands held no beasts or any dangerous predators, and this was not a hunting trip. Surely he needed to restring his bow as well if he wanted to use it.

He left the house and hiked out in the woods. He avoided the road. It would be both faster for him to travel this way, and he would most likely not bump into anyone else. The area of Tol Eressea he had chosen to settle in was remote and sparesly populated. He was wrong though. It didn't take long before he sighted an elleth with long golden hair on the ground collecting herbs with a little elfling strapped to her back in a harness. It was his neighbor Tildara.

His closest neighbors were a couple who lived in a simple cottage about a mile from his house. Elaron and Tildara. They had been among the first elves to awake and had journeyed together to The Undying Lands and settled on Tol Eressea where they had lived ever since in the same spot.

He felt a sting of guilt for not visiting them for so long. He had neglected them as he had everyone else in his life lately. He liked them,they were simple people but yet old and wise beyond most elves he had ever met. They kept to themselves mostly and even if some mockingly called Tildara a sorceress and had recommended he'd stay away from her and her husband he had never listened. Elaron and Tildara were good people. He just didn't want to meet anyone at the moment, but it was already too late.

"Thranduil!" Tildara looked up with a large smile, a smile that faded as soon as she saw the state he was in. She quickly got up on her feet and walked up to him. Without a word she put her palm on his forehead. Thranduil felt a warm feeling emanating from her as she touched him and he closed his eyes. Tildara gasped.

"I thought you were fading" She whispered. "But somehow your life force has been almost completely restored. I've never seen anything quite like it. The ways of the Valar are indeed mysterious. You should thank them."

She let her hand slide down from Thranduil's forehead and a smile again graced her face.

"It's not my habit thanking the Valar." Thranduil answered with a smile.

"I know. You are a stubborn elf, but sometimes it might be time for a change of habits."

"Perhaps. It has been too long,how are you and your husband doing?"

"We are well my friend. We have been blesses with yet another elfling as you can see. Our seventh and our first boy. Little Tharion is the new light of our lives."

Thranduil looked over Tildara's shoulder at the baby. He could hardly be more than two years old and Thranduil could not help but smile when the little boy opened his big storm gray eyes to look at him.

"He is a beautiful child. Takes after his mother. You are truly lucky. Children is the greatest blessing of all."

"Indeed they are." Tildara smiled. "Even if your life force is almost restored you still have a lot of healing to do from what I can see, both in body and mind. I could give you a healthy start with the body at least. I have a stew boiling at home and you would be welcome to join me and my husband for a meal, if you'd like to."

"I was actually on my way somewhere, but I guess it would be rude to say no." For the first time in a very, very long time a bright smile lit up his face. A smile that came straight from the heart. Even if he was in a hurry to find the tree he felt both thankful and happy. His stomach longed for a good meal and truth to be told he thought he would enjoy the company.

The cottage and the surrounding garden where Tildara and Elaron lived was located high up on a cliff overlooking the sea. It was fairly small and simple but had a homely and warm feeling about it. Elaron was mending one of his fishing nets when they arrived outside the cottage. He too greeted Thranduil warmly and while Tildara set the table in the garden and Elaron finished with his net they let Thranduil hold Tharion.

While the elfling truly was adorable he also came to think of Legolas on several occasions. When he came back home he would contact his son. Even if the two of them were as different as two elves could possibly be they were still flesh and blood, and he loved his son more than anything even if Legolas always seemed to think differently. And, maybe Legolas was right to an extent. Maybe Thranduil had been a bit too hard on his son, and maybe he had not always expressed how much he really loved Legolas. Perhaps Legolas had always reminded him a bit too much of his wife, the elleth that had left him? When he came back home he would try to make it right. Maybe it wasn't possible after so many millennia of a dysfunctional relationship, but he would at least try.

"You said you were going somewhere when I invited you for dinner." Tildara said and put some more stew on Thranduil's plate. He had eaten two portions already, but it felt like he could eat much more. His appetite was slightly embarrassing, but he had not had a proper cooked meal for a long, long tome. He hoped Elaron and Tildara would understand.

"Indeed I am." He hesitated for a moment wondering if he should really tell them about the tree and the dream, but he figured that in the end at least Tildara would probably find out anyway. In many ways she reminded him of Galadriel, but she clearly lacked the ambition to rule that The Lady Of Lorien had. One thing was clear tho, Tildara could see much more than the average elf.

"I am going to this place." Thranduil showed the couple the map that he had drawn and Elaron lifted an eyebrow.

"It is indeed a very strange place you have chosen to visit." Elaron said. "I hunt there some times, plenty of game. Birds, deer, and no one else hunting. My wife sometimes accompany me because she claim that some of the plants that grow there are unique and can be found nowhere else. For my part I know I shot birds twice that are unlike anything I've seen before. And then one day I found the book."

"What book?" Thranduil became more and more curious.

"Wait a minute. I'll get it for you." Elaron hurried into the cottage and Tildara smiled.

"He has been thinking a lot about the book since he found it." Tildara said. "But one thing is for certain. We have never seen that tree you have drawn. An oak tree like that is not something one would miss."

Thranduil nodded.

"I had a dream this morning. I need to find that tree."

"And perhaps you will. I think you are right to trust your instincts Thranduil. The dream most certainly is an important one, and even more so because just some time ago you were fading, but now suddenly your life force has been restored. You have been given a second chance and I think all of this has deeper meaning to it. Don't you agree?"

"Perhaps." Thranduil answered.

"Here it is." Elaron handed over an odd looking book. The covers were a blue fabric and the ridge a soft blue leather. The book was small and when he opened it the pages were covered with hand writing but he could not read a word. The letters were unfamiliar to him as well as the feel of the paper and the strange blue ink used for writing down the words.

Thranduil shook his head in disbelief.

"This is indeed very strange. It is not written in any known alphabet and everything about it seems strange and out of place. I've simply never seen anything like it."

"Maybe you'll find the answered." Tildara said.

Thranduil looked up at the sky. It was already late afternoon and he had stayed here far longer than he had intended. He would prefer making it to the cape before nightfall, but then he'd have to hurry. The time he had spend with his neighbors and their little son had been good for him, but seeing the family also ignited a deep feeling of sadness in him. He was pretty sure that was why he had stopped visiting them in the first place. They had what he had always wanted. A love that had lasted from the beginning of their kind and would last to the end of this world. A life in peace, harmony and simplicity. He never had anything like that, and for the most part he had himself to blame. It was painful, but it was the truth.

"I think it is time for me to go. It is getting late and I have a long walk ahead of me. I thank you for inviting me to your home and sharing your delicious food with me. It is something I will not forget easily."

"You are welcome back any time." Tildara said with a smile."Take this, it will bring you luck and make your journey to the cape shorter." She handed over a white rabbit foot on a silver chain.

"Thank you!" Thranduil said simply and started walking.

A long time Tildara watched the tall elf's back. Then she sighed, picked up the elfling and walked around the house to the backside where a small path paved with white stones led in to the woods. She walked until she reached the clearing with the spring. She carefully filled an old pot with water and then poured the content into a stone basin on a pedestal.

She placed little Tharion on her hip and closed her eyes for a moment. When she opened them again she could see a picture forming on the surface. She could clearly tell that it was indeed the Valar that had spared Thranduil's life, just as she had expected, but why she was not allowed to see. Clearly he was of great importance though, and so was the journey he had just embarked on.

Then the pictures suddenly changed, showing her scenes from what looked like a dark and terrible future. Cities burning, dead bodies everywhere and dark terrible creatures the like she had never seen. She pulled the elfling closer to her and she had to force herself to keep her eyes open. Then suddenly the visions disappeared and the water surface was calm and clear only reflecting herself and the surrounding trees. She shivered and poured the water back into the spring where it came from.

Slowly she walked back to the house. Yet she did not know what to make of what she saw but the feeling she got was alarming. Something was very wrong.


	3. The Island

**New chapter...Hope you enjoy!**

**And thanks btw for all of you who has taken the time to review! I'm happy you like it so far =)**

**Issy: Yes I will get more into the relationship between Thranduil and Legolas later on in the story, becaus it does have quite a big part to play in how the story will turn out in the end. =)**

**And, please, if you have any constructive criticism to give me about my grammar and language use please feel free to do so. Since english is not my native language there are probably some useuful hints you could give me to make my story come alive more. =) **

It felt like Thranduil had only walked for about two hours when he reached the cape. It was quite peculiar really and he looked at the rabbit foot hanging around his neck. Was this perhaps what Tildara had meant when she claimed it would make his journey shorter? He had never liked sorcery nor trusted in it, but this time he was at least thankful for the gift. Tildara must indeed really have believed in the things she said if she wanted to give him a powerful gift like this.

Thranduil had never been the one to either thank or trust in the Valar. He thought he had seen too much to stop believing in their intervention. He had lost far too much and the only thing he believed in was hard work, passion and determination. That was what had kept him going until now. Still his miraculous recovery was a mystery to him, why would the Valar care about saving him? What made him special, and what made them think they could toy with his life? He would have welcomed death and had never prayed for a miracle like this. Only fools did. He sighed and looked around.

As everywhere else around the area where he lived the forest was open with a lot of space between the high and slim tree trunks. Like a colonnade hall of living trees with a floor of soft, green moss. The setting sun gave everything a soft golden color and a peacock looked curiously at him from behind a tree.

"Today is you lucky day, little one." He said to the peacock. "I don't have my bow. If I had you would be a very good candidate for dinner."

Just the thought of food made him feel hungry again. Extremely hungry. He guessed his body needed more nutrition now that he was apparently recovering. The food would have to wait tho. He wanted to find the great oak first, if it indeed existed.

He had roamed around the cape for a while when finally caught a glimpse of what looked like a very big and very old tree trunk, and there it was. Standing in the middle of a small clearing he found the mighty oak. It made his heart beat a little faster. The tree was exactly like in his dream, huge and old with a faint glow about it. He slowly ran his hand over the rough bark and closed his eyes to hear what the powerful oak had to tell him.

He stood like that for a while. With both hands on the tree trunk and eyes closed. The energy that emanated from the tree was like nothing he ever felt in a tree before. It was unique, and both savage and wise in a curious combination. The tree told him about another world, a world where he existed at the same time as he existed here in The Undying Lands. A world full of life that sounded very much like the beloved Middle Earth he had left behind so long ago. The tree asked him if he wanted to see this other world.

"Take me there." He mentally answered, but added. "Can I go back here?" He could not stop thinking about Legolas and he wanted to make things right with his son.

"Yes, you can go back and forth any time you choose. You just have to touch me and wish for it." The tree answered.

"Then take me there" Thranduil said. He might just get it over with, since this was without a doubt the reason why he was here in the first place. Someone wanted him to go to this place and honestly he had nothing better to do. He would let the Valar get what they wanted this time and he in turn would get the possibility of seeing something new. He could not help feeling a tingle of excitement.

The first thing he felt was that the air around him was cooler. When he opened his eyes he was standing in a clearing almost identical to the one he had left behind. The only difference was that the ground was wet and there were traces of snow here and there. His breath turned to smoke when he exhaled, but being an elf the cold didn't bother him. He smiled.

"Morning, early spring." He thought. He could feel it in the air. Time must pass differently here he concluded. It had been early evening in The Undying Lands but here it was early morning and the sunrise colored the sky in bright shades of red, orange and yellow.

Thranduil took a deep breath. This was a world very much alive, much like Middle Earth, but yet not. He could smell it in the air and feel it all around him. This place was different, but he was pretty sure he liked it. At least there were seasons here he thought, not the static never ending summer of The Undying Lands.

Spring had always been his favorite season. Seeing the forest come to life again after a long sleep. Not much really compared to that. He thought about how he used to decorate his crown with the earliest spring flowers. It was most beautiful then. He wondered where he had put his crown. He hadn't used it for centuries now. Not even looked at in in fact, cause it only brought sadness to his heart. He would look for it when he went back home.

The oak looked almost the same on this side besides that it had a very peculiar blue rope hanging from one of it's lower branches. He curiously touched the rope. The material was unfamiliar to him.

"The children used to play here a lot. They liked me I think." The Oak said.

"Used to?"

"Yes they are all grown up now, and have better things to do than swinging on ropes and climbing old oak trees, I imagine." The Oak sighed.

"Mortals?"

"Yes, mortals."

"Where are we exactly." Thranduil asked.

"The realm is Earth, and the place you are standing on is The Island."

"This is an island?"

"Yes indeed. Why don't you go and take a look around?"

"I might just do that." Thranduil answered with a smile.

The clearing was surrounded by high pine trees and two other oaks that were slightly smaller and much, much younger than the Big Oak. Thranduil decided that he liked them both though. They were proud and beautiful trees, and even if they didn't have an own voice like the Big Oak he could feel their energy and life force strong beneath his hands.

When he looked up in the crown of the bigger of the two oaks he noticed something very odd though. High up was something that looked like a platform built by an elf. It was very well concealed, and he would never have noticed it if the tree had leaves and he hadn't been very used to these kind of structures. For a mortal it probably looked just like a part of the tree if he or she even noticed it.

Thranduil was an experienced climber and it took him just a few minutes to reach up to the platform. It was old and the wood fragile in places, but it was without a doubt built by an elf. There was nothing that could tell him who had built it but it was clear that it had been abandoned for quite a long time. He was puzzled. It was clear an elf had visited the island before, but when, how and why? He decided to ask the Oak.

"You have an awful lot of questions Thranduil Oropherion The Oak said."

"Can you blame me?" Thranduil answered slightly annoyed.

"No I suppose not." The Oak sighed. "Unfortunately I'm not allowed to answer most of them. I can however say that you are correct. There has been an elf on this island before you. More than that I am not allowed to tell you."

"Not allowed by whom?"

"I think you know the answer to that already."

"The Valar."

"Yes, the Valar."

"The Valar be damned." Thranduil muttered mostly to himself.

"If you want the answers you have to seek them yourself, unfortunately."

Thranduil sighed and went on with his mission to look around the island. He quickly found out that it was not a large island by any means. In fact he managed to walk around it fairly quickly. On the south and west side all he could see was the endless waves of the sea, but to the north and east he could see what he believed to be the mainland. By boat it would not take long to reach the coast, and on the north east side he could see what he thought was a town or a city. The houses were strange was the first thing he noticed.

There were no high cliffs on the island, just long empty beaches littered with driftwood and seaweed. In fact the whole island seemed to be like a giant pile of sand that someone had poured into the ocean to create it. Behind the sand dunes the pine trees grew like a protective shield for the clearing with the Big Oak against the cold wind from the sea. Thranduil liked the place. It was beautiful in a raw and harsh way that very much suited his mood.

The only thing he did not find to his liking was the fact that he found one of the strange houses that the mortals of this world built. It was a rather large wooden villa painted in yellow and white located by the beach in a bay that kept it protected from the wind. He could see no sign of the owners though. There was no boat by the pier and when he looked into one of the windows he could only see furniture covered with white sheets, piles of dust in the corners and dead potted plants. Much like his own house he thought. Not a home, just an empty, quiet shell.

The empty house might not have told him anything about if or when it's owner would return or who they were, but one thing it could tell him. The book that Elaron had found had to be from this place. There was a sign on the door written in the same alphabet. What the letters meant he had no idea about, but the writing was the same. Did this mean that a mortal had crossed over to The Undying Lands from this world? And who was the other elf that had built the platform? Was he or she back in The Undying Lands or still here?

There were too many questions that needed answers, but the Oak was unwilling to help him. All of this he thought about wile eating the mediocre food he had brought with him. The dry crackers and the two apples were by no means enough to satisfy his appetite and there seemed to be little he could eat on the island since he neither had his bow or any kind of fishing equipment. He had to get back home to pick up some supplies he figured.

Even if he very much disliked the idea of playing it straight into the hands of the Valar he had to come back here. There were too many questions he needed an answer to and truth to be told he wanted to know why he of all elves had been directed here. What was the reason for it all?


	4. Cara

**New chap, and an introduction to my main OC...**

She rinsed her face with ice cold water. Then she stared at her reflection in the mirror for a long time. Red eyes, dry lips, pale. She realized there was no towel left in the bathroom and that the water had run down her cleavage. She tried her best to wipe her face with her sleeve.

"Cara, Cara where are you ?!" She heard her sister's voice echoing in the empty apartment.

"Just a moment!" She answered and continued staring at her reflection.

"We need to hurry. We have to sign the papers at the bank in half an hour, and you know how the traffic is this time of the day. Don't you?"

"Yes I do!" Was her only answer. She sighed and tied up her messy blond curls in a bun on her head. She had to do something about the hair later but now she could not care less. It was painful as it was to leave the apartment behind and the hangover didn't make things better.

She picked up her handbag from the toilet seat and opened the door. Outside her sister stood with that unmistakable look of disapproval on her face. Even if Evelyn was much shorter than her she had always had a way of making Cara seem so very little. But in a way it was no surprise Evelyn was the older sister, and the sister that had done it all the right way. At 32 she was married, had two kids, a job that payed well, a clean perfect home and respectable friends. She was not the screw up that people kept talking about, Cara was.

"Feeling bad?" Coming from Evelyn it sounded more like a statement than a question but Cara answered anyway.

"Could be worse." She tried to sound like she didn't care.

"Let's go then." Evelyn led the way.

Cara had never liked empty apartments They were like graveyards to her. Full of sadness and lost memories. Leaving this apartment behind was especially hard. The two sisters had practically grown up here. Especially Cara had always loved spending her time after school with her grandmother. She had made her feel loved in a way that her mother was not able to and her father didn't want to do. Now the apartment was emptied and to be sold. She took a last look at the hall and sighed before Evelyn locked the door behind her. She sighed.

"Hey, it's just an apartment" Evelyn said and started walking down the stairs.

"Not just any apartment" Cara whispered to herself while her heels echoed against the stairs.

"You have no reason to be bitter here. You are such a child you know that? Will you ever grow up?" Evelyn suddenly said and turned around to face her younger sister. Her brown eyes full of anger.

"I'm not bitter! I'm just sad to see the apartment go. It has been an important place for us both. Don't you feel that way too?" Cara just wanted Evelyn to stop. She might not be angry and bitter as her sister put it, but in a way she knew Evelyn was right. She was indeed a person very much ruled by her emotions and she knew she didn't behave like a 28 year old woman most of the time. But she worked on changing it all the time. It was just so damn hard.

"You will have The Island! The whole fuckin Island! How that is even possible? Why did she want you to have it? You have never done anything to deserve it. Who visited grandmother every day during the last years of her life? It was me! And you dare show up today like this, a hungover whiny mess."

Cara just closed her eyes and tried to breath steadily. Yes, she might not have behaved like the ideal granddaughter, but she was sorry for that at least. She almost wanted to scream that Evelyn could have the Island if she wanted it so damn much, but then she pulled herself together and said:

"So this is what it is all about? You are jealous because I get The Island. Remind me, weren't you the one who never wanted to spend the holidays there? And, by the way you will get the villa up north that is worth just as much, so why are you complaining?"

" I am not jealous! It is because you are a screw up! You will not be able to keep The Island for long, and you know that. You can't handle money, you can't handle yourself, so tell me, how will you ever be able to take care of a whole island? You do not deserve The Island."

Cara didn't have much to say, she never had when her sister started her rants. Inside she wanted to kick Evelyn in her face, cause damn, she deserved it for being such a bitch. But on the other hand there was some truth to what she said. Cara knew she couldn't handle money, and she knew she was alone and it would be a challenge taking care of a place like The Island. She might have lived a crazy life before, but she had changed, Evelyn just didn't want to see it. This time it would be different, she swore to herself. She loved The Island and she would prove her sister wrong.

The two sisters, Cara tall and blond and Evelyn short and dark haired walked side by side to Evelyn's car without saying a word or even looking at each other. Cara dressed in sky high heels, black skinny jeans and a short fur jacket and Evelyn in comfortable and practical sneakers, blue jeans and a puffer jacket. It was late March, but to Cara it still felt incredibly cold. She was not sure it was exactly cold or if she just felt frozen for other reasons but she pulled the open fur coat closer around her body and shivered.

Luckily the affairs in the bank office were fast taken care of and even if it felt like she lost a lot by selling the apartment it sill felt good to have what felt like limitless funds on her account. Her goodie, goodie sister transferred a lot of her share to her kids. It was to be expected. Cara had no kids to save money for, and no plans of having any either. Screw ups hardly became good mothers anyway. There were a whole lot of other options on how to spend money tho and even if she shouldn't go shopping the thought of it made her heart race. Just for today she would give herself the satisfaction of buying some pretty new stuff, after that she would stop. Just today, then no more shopping.

Cara felt like a whole different person when she was no longer around Evelyn, and the afternoon went on like she was walking in a dream of pretty clothes, shoes and bags. Buying beautiful things made her feel happy, special and wanted in an unconditional way.

When she was younger men had made her feel wanted and special, but she had figured out long ago that it all came with a price. Most, if not all of her former boyfriends had treated her like a piece of meat or as arm candy to show off to shallow friends. Maybe she had herself to blame by being too shallow herself and choosing the wrong guys but the result was the same any way. She had given up on finding love. Love was for lucky fools or simple idiots who were stupid enough to mistake the desires of the flesh for real feelings.

Even now with a hangover, her hair a mess and no make up she could see men staring at her when she walked down the streets with her hands full of shopping bags. So let them stare, she thought. She was no foolish girl anymore, she knew very well that the only thing they wanted to do was to fuck her, plain and simple. She knew she as beautiful and she was lucky to still looks younger than her years even if she didn't deserve it after living the kind of life she had lived.

When she finally came home it was late in the evening and the first thing she did was to throw away all the recipes from her shopping binge. She didn't want to be reminded of how much she had really spend, it was enough to know that she had bought herself almost a whole new wardrobe and that she shouldn't have done it.

She poured herself a glass of wine to relieve some of the guilt she felt and then she opened her computer. Today she would start writing her book. She had planned it ever since she came back home from London a year ago but never really had the right motivation to start writing. Maybe she had hesitated for so long because she would have to remember things she really didn't want to remember?

Cara had started modeling at an early age. First it was just small extra jobs here and there, but when she was sixteen her agency wanted to send her to Milan. They thought she could make it as a runway model. Her parents had refused, but as soon as she was eighteen and her parents no longer had a say in the matter she had left. School had never been the place she wanted to be and the modeling gave her the money she wanted. She had never really made it as a model tho. Of course she had work, but it was not exactly the Vogue covers that she had dreams of. More often it was German mail order catalogs and other crappy work. She made money tho, and even if she was no supermodel she partied like one for sure. She had spend ten years moving around from city to city in Europe working and partying hard. Some periods of that time almost seemed like a blur to her and maybe it was a good thing? After all she had done and seen things that she would rather not have.

A year ago things had finally taken it's tall on her and he had a nervous breakdown. Somewhere in the back of her head she realized that she could not go on living like she had. It was no real life and she had never learned to live like an adult person should, but she was working on that now. Or at least tried to do so. She was seeing a therapist and trying to grow as a person but it was hard. She sometimes wished Evelyn would give her some credit for that, but the older sister was the way she was and deep down Cara knew they would never fully understand each other. They were too different.

Her therapist had recommended her to write down her experiences and her life story to get things more into perspective and Cara herself had taken the idea a step further. She would make it a book that she hoped she could get published. She figured that sex, drugs and rock n' roll always sold, so why not try to earn some money from her own misery?

The sad fact that her grandmother had passed away and left The Island to her might prove to be a good thing for her writing at least. She had always love the place and being out in nature far away from the city would help her in the process of writing she figured. As soon as it was a bit warmer she would take her first trip to The Island.


	5. Vanity & Desire

**New chapter finally... The story is slightly slow moving at the moment, but there will be more action soon. =)**

The last six weeks had passed quickly. Thranduil had spend most of his time on The Island and he had to confess that it had a very positive effect on him. He delighted in all the small changes he could see in nature, every day something was new. It might just be a new bug crawling up a tree trunk or a change in the color of the leaves. How he had missed the changing of the seasons, it made him feel warm and alive in a way he thought he would never experience again.

He had spend a lot of time repairing the old platform in the tree. But he had to admit that building and repairing might not be one of his greatest talents tho. As a king he had been used to other people doing such things for him, but after a while and a few mistakes, the platform was in acceptable condition. He had somewhere to sleep and store his belongings and that made things easier and more pleasant.

When he was not doing work on the platform he hunted or fished. There were deer on The Island and plenty of birds. He found that he gained back more and more of his strength every day and that alone made him pleased. Because of the The Island he had found a new will to live. There was the simple delight of the nature around him, and also mysteries that waited to be solved.

When it came to finding answers to the questions he had things were progressing slower than he had hoped. He had searched the area for clues left behind by the other elf that had originally built the platform but so far there were none. He had also not seen any sign of the owners of the yellow house. He saw ships and boats pass by now and then, very strange, noisy and unappealing once mostly, but no one had yet visited The Island.

The mortals in this world seemed very different from the once that he had met in Middle Earth, but yet there were very much the same. Reckless and some times very cruel, but also unbelievably innovative and positive. He had learned a lot of the mortals, and what they called their "technology" from his long conversations with the Big Oak.

Thranduil could not help thinking if the mortals in Middle Earth had progressed in the same way as the people here and if so that they had become just as detached from nature as they seemed here? The greatest weakness in the race of men according to him had always been that they seemed to think they could bend nature to their will and own the land.

As the days went by Thranduil became more and more certain that he would not find any leads to what happened to or who the other elf on The Island was. He figured that the best way to get somewhere would probably be on the other side in Valinor. He also needed to get back and take care of another thing he had put off for too long. He wanted to talk to Legolas and try to repair their relationship.

It was not an easy task but he would be the one to reach out a hand and that would hopefully make his son realize that he really was sorry for everything that had happened. After all, even if Legolas had behaved very stupidly at times most of the blame was still on himself. He had not been the best of fathers but there was no way to turn back time and he wanted to at least try to tell the story from his point of view. Damn, he would even apologize to that daughter in law if that was what it took to get Legolas back into his life.

During one of his visits Celeborn had told Thranduil that Legolas and his wife had another elfling. A boy. Thranduil had no idea how old the boy was now, but he wanted so see his grandson and also meet his granddaughter Milwen again. He wanted to have a family again. He wanted to be a good grandfather , teach small elflings to use the bow and celebrate birthdays. He simply wanted to feel like he was loved and needed by someone.

Two days later he was back in his house. The place looked the same as always. It was a beautiful house he had to admit. He had liked it from the start but now it only reminded him of the countless years he had wasted by being in the sorry state he had been in. He did not even have an idea about how long he had existed like that, and he was not even sure he wanted to find out either. Thranduil sighed.

He started by cleaning up what had been his combined bedroom and study. He wanted to make it just a bedroom again. He opened up another room and made it his study. He moved furniture around and organized all his maps, scrolls and books neatly on shelves. He liked the end result very much. His new study was a light and organized room and a good environment for work. After that he moved some furniture to his bedroom and redecorated it with the few textiles that he found in his house that were not too brittle by old age. He needed to get new things and he needed to hire someone to take care of the house again he realized.

All the furniture he deemed to be in too bad shape to save and repair he carried down to the beach and as the pile he created grew higher his heart felt lighter in his chest. He also topped the pile with a large amount of his own notes. Over the years he had spent hours, weeks and years studying all possible sources of literature to help him find a way back to Middle Earth. His room had been full of notebooks and sheets filled with crazy theories and dark and delirious diary notes that made no sense. For the first time he realized how far gone he had really been and it made him shiver.

In the evening on the third day back in his house he burned everything he had carried out. The bonfire lit up his beach and Thranduil watched the sparks fly and felt the heat tickle his skin.

"And, there it goes." He said loudly to himself and took a sip from the wine bottle he had brought with him while the material reminders of one of the darkest periods of his life burned to ashes.

For the first time since he had been miraculously "cured" he really felt thankful from the bottom of his heart that the Valar had saved him.

The next morning he dressed for travel. He concluded that even if he was slightly thinner than he used to he no longer looked like the pathetic wreck he had seen in the mirror last time. He was happy that his son would not have to see that sorry excuse for an elf that had stared back at him only a month ago.

The thought of meeting Legolas made him nervous. He felt ashamed of that fact. This was after all his son that he had known for thousands of years, and even if their relationship had been a bit more restrained and complicated than he had wanted they were still flesh and blood and that was all that really mattered in the end. He sighed and walked out.

The journey to Avallone, the main city of Tol Eressea was uneventful. He bought a horse in a village to make his journey faster and the feeling of riding again made him feel very much both happy and alive. In Avallone he stayed at an inn for a few days and had some new clothes made for him before finally boarding a ship with the mainland of Aman as destination.

Thranduil's final destination was Valmar where he had two reasons for going. The first being Legolas and the second to visit the royal archives in search for the elf that had once lived on The Island. Thranduil knew that it was quite unusual for elves to simply disappear into thin air here in Valinor. In rare cases accidents happened during hunting trips and such, but then the bodies were usually found after a while. The actual cases with elves simply disappearing were indeed only a few over the last millennium, Thranduil had learned when he visited the local archive in Avallone. The timid elf in the archive had referred him to the main archive in Valmar where such records were kept. Thranduil knew the chances were slim that he would find any real leads this way but at least he would try. It was the only thing he really could think of at the moment.

A few days later when he arrived in Valmar it was hot and the sun was shining from a cloudless blue sky and he felt very lost and alone among the ancient and indescribably beautiful buildings. He had never been all too fond of the capital even if the beauty of the city was undeniable. The streets were also filled with elves and during his days of isolation he could go months or even years without seeing anyone and now that he was surrounded by people on all sides it made him feel totally overwhelmed.

Thranduil escaped to the nearest inn that looked respectable enough for him and got a room on the third floor. Thankfully it was rather quiet around him again. He sighed. Looking down at the people in the street seemed much less intimidating than being surrounded by them. The room lacked a bit of personality but was impeccably clean and the bed was soft and very much to his liking.

He sighed and smiled when he caught himself taking note of what the elves in the street were wearing. Maybe vanity wasn't such a bad trait after all even if his son seemed to think so. Thranduil was the person he was, and being him included being slightly vain and concerned about both the way he was dressed and the way he looked. For him this was only another sign that he was slowly getting back to his normal self again after years of neglect.

The next day after sleeping until noon it was finally time to confront Legolas. Thranduil took a bath and got dressed before walking to the part of the city where he knew his son lived. This time he felt a bit less intimidated by the people in the streets but it might possibly have been because his thoughts were on Legolas. He pondered if buying a present for his son would be a good idea, but then he decided against it. Legolas was not the type to be impressed by trinkets, the best thing he could do was just to be straight forward and honest, and after that it was up to Legolas to decide what to do.

Thranduil was lost in his thoughts until a dark haired elleth passed him by on the street and caught his attention. She looked at him, up and down, with something that looked suspiciously like lust in her eyes and her plump rosy lips turned into a smile when he passed her. He returned the smile and could not help looking back when she had passed him. She was indeed beautiful and and the way her curvy hips moved seductively under the fabric of her dress ignited something inside of him that he hadn't felt for a very long time. Desire.

He cursed the fact that he had important things to do. If he wasn't on the way to see Legolas he would gladly have stoped to ask for her name and if he could see her later. The elleth looked over her shoulder and smiled again like that was exactly what she wanted too. Thranduil shook his head and continued on. He had always been quite shameless when it came to women in his past life and a younger Thranduil would no doubt have gotten what he wanted. Now he had other things on his mind and what his body wanted had to wait. The thought of the elleth's hungry eyes still had a pleasant effect on him, he had to admit.

After quite a long walk uphill he finally saw the house where his son lived. It was rather large and quite luxurious even by his standards. Legolas had certainly done well, and at least financially married well. His wife was the daughter of a very powerful royal advisor in Valmar and she was born and raised in Valinor. In Thranduil's opinion she was a horrible spoiled brat with no clue of what life was really like. She had absolutely nothing to offer his son, besides her wealth and her pampered beauty. That unpopular opinion had been the final blow to the relationship between him and Legolas.

Thranduil sighed and lifted his hand to knock on the heavy door.


	6. Sins Of The Father

**Thank you for all the new follows and faves! I'm happy you enjoy the story so far! This chapter took me ages to write, and I'm still not quite satisfied by how it turned out...Hope you like it tho. =)**

**Issy: Sorry that you have to wait for the conversation a bit longer, but there still is mostly Legolas and Thranduil in this chapter. =)**

The last six weeks of Legolas life had been all but good. It had started the day he came home and found his wife Enelya sitting by the dining table dressed in one of her finest gown with a scroll in front of her and her father standing behind her chair and her mother sitting next to her holding her hand. The room was so quiet that that and the air so thick that it could be cut with a knife. Legolas had stoped dead in the door his heart pounding in his chest. Deep inside he knew what was coming, but he still could not believe it.

"It is over." Enelya said coldly. She didn't show any sign of emotion in her face but her mother on the other hand was sobbing like a baby. Probably mostly out of shame Legolas guessed. The two ladies still looked impeccable as always, dressed in expensive jeweled silk gowns and with their hair done up in the latest styles in fashion in Valmar. They looked more like they were going to a party than signing divorce papers. Maybe they were, after they were done here. Even if time had changed the customs of the eldar a great deal a divorce was very much the scandal of the century in Valmar. Only a handful of cases were even known.

Legolas shivered. He had hoped for a long time that it wouldn't come to this. He knew right from their wedding night that their relationship weren't truly what they had maybe dreamed about, but still they had two children and a marriage lasting eight hundred years behind them. Did that count for nothing?

"Legolas Thranduilion, you will sign this or..." Enelya's father said in a threatening voice.

"But, what about Fëanáro?" Legolas heart was beating violently in his chest. He could deal with a divorce, and even accept it, but loosing the boy was not an option!

"Read the agreement, yourself. You may keep the boy if you wish, but if you do you will loose the house and all material possessions and funds not in your possession before the marriage.

Legolas felt ill. It would leave him left with almost nothing with a son to feed. How could they do this to him? Legolas had a sneaking suspicion that it was not only his wife who had written the divorce papers. His father in law had never liked him. In fact he had told Legolas many times what a disgrace it was for them to have a barbaric Sindarin elf from some obscure realm in Middle Earth marrying into a prominent family like theirs. Legolas sighed.

"I will accept. I'll do anything as long as I get to keep Fëanáro." Legolas said.

"You will leave this house in two months time, or you will be forced to move, is that clear? After that it will be sold." Enelya said and Legolas wondered how she could stay so calm when she had just lost her son, but then again she had never been the one to express much interest in their children, and certainly not in their younger one.

Legolas was furious. He had known for quite some time that his marriage was a failure, but the fact that his wife was so heartless came as a surprise even to him. Many things had surprised him greatly when he came to The Undying Lands, but especially the moral standards were very different here than they had been in Middle Earth. In his view the elves seemed to become more and more like the race of men. Or rather taking some of the worst traits of the humans and making them their own. The elves in Valinor had for countless millennia had the luxury not to care about such basic things as their own survival. Instead the pursuit of things like wealth, power and passion had become more important.

Legolas had signed the divorce papers that day. He had only seen his wife twice since. Both times she came with a whole squad of servants who emptied the house into caskets and bags and carried out furniture. The house became emptier and emptier and Legolas grew more desperate. He had no good and honest answers to give his fifteen year old son on why his mother was suddenly gone from their lives or where they were going next. Until the message from Lord Elrond arrived.

Legolas sighed and picked up a book from a table. He was packing the few things that belonged to him into saddlebags. Fëanáro was already in New Imladris and the next morning Legolas would also leave the house in Valmar for good. At first he had been ashamed to accept the help Elrond had offered him, but he had realized that he didn't have much of a choice. He had to swallow his pride and accept the position as archery instructor for the elflings in New Imladris. It was clearly out of pity that Elrond had given him the job since he already had a very good archery instructor.

Pity or not Legolas needed a place to stay and New Imladris was a good place for Fëanáro to grow up. He would do everything in his power be a good father. He would always put his sons needs first and raise him himself unlike his own father had done.

Speaking of his father, Thranduil had been the reason why Elrond had sent for Legolas in the first place. Apparently the elf lord had received word from Celeborn on Tol Eressea that Thranduil was ill. Fading, the message said. Reluctantly Legolas had taken Fëanáro and traveled to New Imladris to see what news Lord Elrond had about his father. Thranduil was his flesh and blood after all.

Elrond had chosen the location of New Imladris well. With his eyes half closed and a bit of a stretch of his imagination Legolas could almost feel like he was back in Middle Earth when he entered the valley. In the three thousand years Elrond had spent in The Undying lands most of his time had been used to create something that seemed almost like a replica of his beloved home in Middle Earth. Legolas could not help feeling both nostalgic and a bit sad. So many memories of his former life had come back to haunt him, both good and bad.

The first elf to greet him was Elrohir who strangely enough was not accompanied by his brother. Legolas had met the twins countless times, and they were always together. Elrohir looked tired and when Legolas asked where his brother was the answer he got puzzled him greatly.

"My brother is gone. He disappeared five years ago."

It had surprised Legolas greatly and now he could truly see that Elrohir looked older somehow. Not physically of course, but his storm gray eyes had lost some of their youthful essence and life. It made Legolas mentally shiver.

"I am sorry to hear that." Legolas finally said after a long silence.

"So am I" Elrohir said, mostly to himself. "You know Legolas, when we first came here from Middle Earth we thought this was paradise but I think most of us have been more or less disappointed. Just look what my father has created here, a slightly soulless replica of what was. Nothing is quite as we expected it to be, and I think you know that too. Don't you?"

Legolas nodded. He knew all too well what Elrohir spoke of. It was not that his life in The Undying Lands had been all bad, but things were not as he had expected them to be. He had never found the peace in his heart that had been promised him, this place had instead made him feel stretched out somehow, like his life was more a dream than reality.

"Welcome Legolas!" Elrond seemed cheerful when he greeted Legolas and showed him to his study where Lord Erestor and Elrohir joined them. The advisor and Lord Elrond looked exactly like they had for as long as Legolas had remembered. Even their style of clothing had not changed and Legolas almost burst into laughter thinking about how far his ex-wife's jaw would have dropped if she had seen their out of style robes. There was nothing amusing about the situation tho and Legolas quickly sat down on the chair Elrohir offered him.

"You know already why you are here Legolas, and there is no use not getting to the point at once." Elrond said, his expression worried. "Your father is dying. Lord Celeborn went to see him, as he does regularly, and he says that the end is near now. Legolas, I know that you are not on talking terms and have not been so for a very long time, bur still you might want to know how things are."

All this came as no surprise to Legolas, but yet he did not know what to say. An awkward silence took over the room before Legolas finally managed to say:

"But how? Are we not supposed to be immune to fading here?"

"Apparently not. It is a myth it seems, and your father is also a special case." Erestor said. It was the first words the advisor had uttered since he had showed up.

"You see Legolas in the case of your father I sometimes think it would have been better if he had stayed behind in Middle Earth. He belonged to the Greenwood and I think he left a piece of his soul there. You see we have all had our share of losses in our life, but your father has seen way more than anyone and survived it. He only held on to life because of his kingdom and because of you. Now he has nothing."

Elrond looked straight into Legolas eyes. Legolas could not maintain eye contact for long. He could not help feeling angry. Did Elrond try to blame him and lecture him on how he treated his father? It was not his business and there was clearly a valid reason if a son turned his back on his father. At the same time he felt panic rise in his chest. When he had read about his fathers fading in the letter it had felt only like words, but now it suddenly felt real and brutal like a knife stabbing him in the gut.

"But what if he would have stayed? They say our people do not belong in the age of men and that those left behind in Middle Earth will slowly fade away and become spirits, one with nature. Would that be a better faith for my father."

"Perhaps it would. No one can tell what is another persons faith, Legolas." Elrond sighed."The Valar did not create us, but they brought us here to Valinor. Perhaps our original purpose was indeed to stay as spirits until the end of Arda. No one knows for sure, and maybe that would have been the right thing for your father. There are plenty of elves who stayed behind, and from what Celeborn told me your father was very unsure of his decision to sail. I think his main motive for coming here at all was you, Legolas. He wanted to be with you. "

Legolas had pondered the situation for too long already. Part of him wanted not to care about his father and leave him to his faith, but another part of him desperately wanted to go to Tol Eressea and make peace with Thranduil. Maybe he could save his father if he truly meant as much to him as Elrond said? Too bad his father had never shown him that. Could anyone really blame him for having doubts?

His thought had made him stop packing, again. He was so easily distracted and it frustrated him to no end. He had never been the one to loose focus, he had spend thousands of years disciplining his mind, but the last six weeks had worn him down. Gone was the perfect elf he had spend his life trying to be. The perfect elf that was still never good enough.

"Thank you father" He told himself bitterly.

When Legolas was born his mother died. Maybe that was why his father had always kept his distance? Or maybe there where other reasons for it? His father had in any case only felt like a shadow looming over Legolas and most of the actual parenting had been done by his nanny and Galion who had been more of a father than Thranduil ever had.

As a little elfling pleasing Thranduil had been more important than anything. His tall, strong and perfect ada, who everyone seemed to love and respect so much. Legolas wanted to be just as him and worked so hard. He studied, he practiced and he tried to please his father in every thinkable way, but never got much response.

As he grew older he saw other sides of his father and slowly but surely he started to despise everything his father was. First it was his hot temper, then his greed. They were not noble traits for an elf but yet Thranduil was loved by his people. Why? Legolas wanted to do better, show that he was not ruled by his emotions as his father was.

As an adult he saw yet more sides of his father that he could have nothing but a profound disgust for; Thranduil's constant drunken parties, his lust for gold and his whoring around with the women in court. He would never be like that. Legolas was more like the perfect elf than his father would ever dream to be, he thought. Calm, collected and above the desires of both mind and flesh, but also very lonely and very much still in need of his father's approval. That last fact he had realized much later on.

He sighed and shoved one of Fëanáro's stuffed animals into the saddlebag. He was so anxious to get away from this house and start a new life for him and his son. Something better than this. But what should he do with Thranduil? Maybe it was already too late?

Suddenly there was a loud knock on the door. Legolas reluctantly went to open since he had no servants left in the house to do it for him. He expected it to be some of his former wife's servants that were here to pick up more things from the house. He was wrong.


	7. Fathers, Sons and Missing Elves

**I'm back with some new chapters! Thank you for the reviews and follows and faves I got wile I've been gone! I am both posting new chapters and doing my best to correct the mistakes that were pointed out to me or I found in the rest of the story. Thank you for the help! Enjoy:**

Legolas stared at his father like he had seen a dead person or like Thranduil wasn't really there. Maybe both. Even if there was absolutely nothing comical about the situation Thranduil couldn't help but to crack up in a smile at the sight of Legolas face.

"Father..." Legolas whispered in disbelief.

"Yes, son. I am really here. Rumors of my fading have been very much exaggerated, I'm afraid." Thranduil laughed dryly.

The expression in Legolas face rapidly changed from surprise to a mixture of shock and anger.

"That is not a thing to joke about, father. We have all been greatly worried about you."

"I see my tastelessness still bother you son. That is a good thing I guess. For what it's worth I'm sorry. May I come in?" Thranduil looked over Legolas shoulder into a suspiciously empty house.

"There is not much to see here.." Legolas said.

"Maybe we could go and have something to eat and perhaps a glass of wine instead? I do have so much to say to you, and I am really, really glad to see you." For a moment Thranduil felt the urge to catch his son in a hug, but then he resisted.

Legolas hesitated for a second unsure what to say then he swallowed.

"Father, I am not sure about this.. Here you show up wanting to drink and have dinner like nothing ever happened. A few minutes ago I thought you were dead."

Legolas had gone from surprised to angry and it made Thranduil feel nervous. He and Legolas had always seen the world from a very different perspective but one thing was sure, they both had a temper even if Legolas was the one who usually managed to control it much better. Now he had gone too far and in a way he could understand why Legolas was upset.

"I'm sorry Legolas. All I wanted was just to talk to you. Please." Thranduil was not the one to beg, but this was different. He had gone too long, perhaps all his sons life, without saying how he really felt and recent events had changed him. Perhaps made him more determined than ever to make things right.

Legolas lifted an eyebrow at his father. The suspicious expression was back, but Legolas nodded slowly.

"Very well. I know a decent place not far from here where we could get a good meal at a good price."

The place was indeed decent. Homely and very clean. Not may other dinner guests. The elf serving the stew they ordered seemed to know Legolas rather well since he automatically brought what seemed to be Legolas preferred wine to the table. They ate in silence. The stew tasted remarkably good and so did the wine. If the situation had been another he would have asked the waiter where it was from and what vintage, now he just watched his son eat. He had never really seen Legolas the same way before it dawned to him. It was an adult marked by a long and eventful life sitting in front of him, not an elfling. Perhaps he had been blinded by his own smug ignorance before, but suddenly he felt what could almost be respect for his son.

"You come here often?"

Legolas looked up from his stew.

"Lately, yes." He answered and took a sip of his wine.

"I couldn't help but notice that your house looked empty. Are you and your lovely wife moving to something bigger?"

"I don't have a wife anymore. I am moving to New Imladris with my son, if you must know. " Legolas said and shifted nervously in his chair like he was waiting for Thranduil to start his "I hate to say I told you so " rant.

Thranduil could not help but to feel a bit smug. Indeed he had a lot to say about his son's choice of woman, but this was not the time.

"I'm sorry. Why New Imladris? "

Legolas looked surprised at Thranduil's lack of comments about the divorce.

"Really?"

Thranduil nodded.

"You already know my opinions of that woman, so there is no use repeating them. You are an adult Legolas it is not my place to judge you or lecture you on your decisions in life. The Valar know I have done much wrong in my long life myself."

"Father? Is that really you?" Legolas stared at his father like something was really wrong with Thranduil.

"I'm afraid so son. I hate to disappoint you, but time changes people, even the most stubborn of us. You might not understand it yet, but I came here to see you and try to make things between us right. All that has happened lately has made me realize how much of a bad father I have been to you. There are countless things I need to ask your forgiveness for Legolas. I don't know what else to say or where to start. "

Legolas dropped his spoon and just stared at his father for a moment, then shook his head slowly.

" You know father. This is really, really a lot to take in. I'm not sure what to make of it. Maybe you can understand that? Just let me take some time to think."

With those words Legolas left the table and Thranduil without looking back.

"Legolas wait!" Thranduil said desperately but Legolas had already left the room.

He sighed. Things could have been worse, perhaps. What had he really expected from this? That his son would suddenly just forgive him because he asked for it? Too much water had flown under this bridge to make things happen in an instant. He had done what he could do at the moment.

Thranduil finished his plate slowly. He didn't really have much on an appetite anymore but he knew his body needed the energy. He emptied three more goblets of wine before paying for both him and Legolas. He could feel the first tingling sensation of intoxication when he got up from the chair. A dull sweet numbness, no euphoria. It suited his mood well.

The effect of the wine disappeared quickly when Thranduil walked the streets of Valmar. It was both the blessing and the curse of being an elf, he thought to himself. At the moment he wished the intoxication would have lasted slightly longer. Instead he tried to push the meeting with Legolas out of his mind and concentrate on the task at hand; visiting the archives in Valmar.

The feeling of utter disappointment was still nagging at him though, as his mind continued replaying the meeting with his son over and over again. Perhaps Legolas hadn't even taken him seriously? There were so many things he probably should have said differently. Maybe the ironic attitude he had displayed in the beginning was too much? Legolas had never been the one to find that part of his personality amusing. But on the other hand there was probably not much about him at all that his son found even mildly tolerable, and it was completly his own fault. That had been made clear numerous times. Constantly he had to remind himself that things could not be undone and it was in Legolas hands now. He was the one who had to make the next move.

Thranduil was almost relieved when he finally reached the large building that was the archive and the main library in Valmar. It was indeed an impressive building, but when he entered it was empty and silent like a tomb. The contrast to the crowded streets and the hot summer sun was striking, the light was dim and it smelled of old parchment and slowly decomposing paper.

Thranduil had to search a good while among the countless high shelves before he found a skinny, timid elf reading by a desk. The elf looked almost like a part of the interior and Thranduil could not help thinking about how many millennia this person had possibly spent in the library. His blond hair had almost taken a grayish color like it was in need of dusting like the books and scrolls on the shelves. The elf didn't react at all to Thranduil, he was so concentrated on his reading.

"Excuse me. Are you a librarian?" Thranduil asked and made the reading elf jump in his seat.

"I am terribly sorry I didn't hear you coming. Yes I am, how can I be of service?"

"A colleague of yours in the archive in Avallonne sent me here. I am looking for information regarding missing persons in Valinor during the last two hundred years or so."

"You are King Thranduil!" The librarian looked ecstatic. "Yes I go the message that you were coming from my colleague. I have collected all the information for you. I can not believe it is really you! I have read everything about you. Everything there is to read here at least. You know, second and third age Middle Earth history is a bit of a hobby of mine, or actually I am a bit of an expert on the subject here in Valmar. At least as much of an expert as one who has never lived or seen Middle Earth can be."

Thranduil felt both irritated and flattered at the same time. He certainly hadn't been called king in a very long time, but on the other hand he hardly felt like a king anymore and the librarians childish enthusiasm was slightly annoying. He hoped that the conversation wouldn't continue into becoming an interview of some kind. He wanted to get what he came for and return home.

"You know, my king" the librarian continued, " I have always admired you greatly. No ring of power and still managed to keep your kingdom safe in a time of great evil. To be honest the only other person I'd rather meet would be Ereinion Gil-Galad, but since that is not possible, for obvious reasons..."

"You settled for second best.." Thranduil smiled evilly. "May I see the information I requested now. I hate to disappoint you, but I sadly don't have much time for chatting. Perhaps another time."

"Perhaps another time. Yes, follow me." The librarian blushed and hurried away with Thranduil following his footsteps.

The whole folder with actual unsolved missing person cases in Valinor the last two hundred years was very thin and consisted of a total of ten cases. What Thranduil found peculiar was that there were two very familiar names on the list; Elrond's son Elladan, last seen in New Imladris five years ago and Lord Glorfindel, last seen on Tol Eressea thirty years ago. Glorfindel was also the only possible case that matched the time frame when the platform on the Island could possibly have been built. Was Glorfindel really the elf on the Island? And was it really possible that it was a pure coincidence that two of the people closest to Elrond was gone without a trace?

The trip to the archive gave some possible answers, but raised a lot more questions.


	8. Green Eyes & Blue Water

**One more chapter for you:**

**And thank you for the kind reviews I got for last chapter btw. =)**

It had taken Cara nearly two days to do all the laundry, clean her apartment and pack her bags, but finally she was going to the Island for the first time in many years. This time things were different thought. The Island was hers and hers alone. She had an own Island!

The car was packed, and she was ready for the two hour drive to the little coast town where the boat was waiting to take her out to The Island. However there was one thing she had to do first. Something she had avoided doing for far too long. She had to visit her mother in the hospital. In a way her sister was right, she did not visit her mother often enough, but it wasn't for lack of caring as Evelyn thought. She simply could not stand seeing her mother in the shape she was. It broke her heart and she could almost feel the pain, the madness, in her own body. Perhaps Evelyn was the stronger one in a way, like she pointed out time and time again, or maybe she just didn't feel pain as much as Cara did?

Cara's mother was suffering from paranoid schizophrenia. That was the diagnosis she got almost twenty years ago when Cara was ten and Evelyn thirteen. She had been institutionalized most of the time and Cara had a feeling that her mother would perhaps not even want or have the courage to leave the hospital anymore even if she would get better. In the beginning she was violent and suffered from wild delusions, but after a while when the medication had taken effect she had calmed down and was mostly quietly staring into nothingness. Most of the time Cara wasn't even sure her mother knew who she was.

This morning Cara did her make up carefully taking time with each step. Foundation, concealer, mascara, powder, lipstick and blush. Lately she had hardly worn any make up but this day was different. The make up was her masque. A layer of chemicals that covered up her pain and made her feel less like herself, more powerful. I was her game face and she needed it now. She sighed.

The hospital corridors were a white wasteland of empty walls and doors with black numbers; 4, 5, 6 and 7 was her mothers room. It smelled of chemical cleanser and newly dried paint. Cara took a deep breath and pushed the door open. This day the room was at least sunny and the window was open letting in the scent of early summer and the sound of singing birds.

Her mother was sitting in the same chair as she always did and seemed to be staring into the wall, her hands gripping the chair. Cara put the potted plant she had brought on the table by the bed and sat down next to her mother.

"Hi Mom. How are you?" She asked with a smile, but she got no reaction from the pale fragile woman in the chair.

They were quiet for quite some time. Cara compared this thin, almost skeletal gray haired woman in the chair to the beautiful young woman she was before she fell ill. Her mother had indeed been a real beauty. A taller, more refined and elegant version of Evelyn. With long, straight light brown hair and big brown eyes. Cara had always envied that hair, so different from her own blond curls. At the hospital they had cut it short many years ago, for practical reasons. Her mothers hair was also much thinner now. Gray and thin, just like her body.

"Do you like the flowers I bought you? Blue is your favorite color isn't it?"

Cara knew very well that blue was indeed her mothers favorite color, but she made it a question rather than a statement because she didn't really know what else to ask. She didn't get an answer either. Her mother was totally unresponsive as usual, staring into the wall.

Cara sighed and got up. She went to the bathroom to get some water for the new plant and made her mothers bed and opened the window a bit further. She wondered if this illness would be her faith too. Schizophrenia was genetic, Evelyn had reminded her time and time again. When there was nothing left to do she sat down next to her mother again.

"You know I'm going out to The Island today. In fact I have my car outside and it is packed with all my stuff. I'll stay all summer, almost. I have to go into town now and then to get some things now and then, of course, but still. Almost all summer on The Island, just like when Evelyn and I were little. I'll have some friends over from time to time and..."

Suddenly Cara felt her mother grip her arm, not at all gently, and stared straight into her eyes. The older woman suddenly looked very focused.

"You have his eyes. The most beautiful green eyes. And hair, like gold..." She whispered.

"Mother what are you talking about?!" Cara tried to pull away, and felt the panic rise in her chest.

"Your father.."

Was this another of her mothers delusions? She tried to pull away again. The doctors had told her and Evelyn that she hadn't had any episodes for a very long time due to a new medicine they had started treating her with.

Her Mothers hand held her wrist in such a tight grip that it hurt and suddenly the older woman started shaking violently. She lost her grip and Cara rushed out into the corridor.

"Nurse, Nurse! Please help! My mother is having some kind of seizure!"

This had not gone well. Shit. It had turned into a fucking disaster. Cara's hands were shaking so much that she couldn't get the car key into the lock. What she needed was a drink, a big and strong one. She hated that a drink was always her method of coping with strong feelings, but at the moment that was what she needed. Sadly she had a long drive ahead of her so she had to settle for a large latte from a nearby coffee shop instead. She just wanted to forget all of this, but it was not at all easy, she kept repeating her mothers words in her head time and time again. Her father had brown eyes and brown hair, everybody knew this. What was she talking abut. She had no idea what to make of it all. She setteled for the whole thing being just one more of her mothers delusions, but still the fact remained that her father had always treated Evelyn so much better. Like Evelyn was more of a daughter than Cara was..

Cara shook her head in disbelief and concluded that her hands were steady enough to start the car. She wanted to get away from here as soon as possible, escape to her island and think about other things.

The drive was uneventful and Cara left the car at the marina and loaded her things on to the boat. She was utterly happy that she had learned how to handle a boat at an early age, because when she finally got out at sea all her troubles seemed to fly away with the sea breeze and the wind in her hair soothed her worried mind. The Island was not far from the coast, but she took a small detour around the Island, HER ISLAND, just to spend a bit more time out at sea. She felt proud when she watched the waves kissing the white beaches of her new home. Finally she would be free and careless, at least for a couple of month.

The house had been empty for a long time and all the furniture was covered with white sheets. It was quite late, and she would leave the cleaning for tomorrow. She just opened up the windows in her favorite bedroom, the one she would make her own, to let in some fresh air and made the bed with clean sheets. After that she went to the kitchen and delighted in finally opening a bottle of champagne and connecting her computer to the internet.

"Finally on The Island." She updated her Facebook status.

She poured a large glass of champagne for herself and checked the status of the event "Cara's Summer Party" that she had created a few days ago. It would be a fancy dress party on The Island and it already had 20 people attending. Among them she noticed Steve. She smiled. She had met him at a club not long ago. He was extremely handsome, and also filthy rich and a bit of an asshole, like most men. They had been on a date last week, and even if he wasn't really her type and she hadn't fallen for him it was quite clear that he was more than interested in her. She would play along for a while. After all he was rich like a troll and he had promised her to bring "a boat (technically meaning a yacht) and booze for everybody to the party. He was clearly an asset for her and the party. She was already a screw up, so why not screw herself up a bit more? She pressed the "like" button on all his comments.

When the sun started setting Cara was already slightly drunk, and all the troubles of the day had faded away to some distant places of her mind. The only thing she saw was the beauty of the The Island and the only thing she felt was the warm evening sun on her skin and the alcohol flowing through her veins. She had changed her jeans and tank top for a long white kaftan and carried out her bottle, portable speakers and iPod on the beach. She let the soft electronic music catch her and slowly she started dancing barefoot, on her own in the sand.

"If all evenings could be like this." she thought to herself, when she suddenly got the feeling that someone was watching her.


	9. The Black Key

O**k, one more chapter for you guys! This one took me quite a while to write, and was quite frankly a bit of a pain in the ass since it didn't move the story that much forward. Hope you still like it anyway!**

**Night-Weaver369:** Sorry, not much action in this chapter yet, will be different when I update next time. I promise. =)

Thranduil felt lighter and more relaxed than he had in a long time when he had left Valmar and returned to his house on Tol Eressea. He had done what he came to do, and even if things with Legolas weren't exactly what he had hoped for he had still at least talked to his son. That alone made him feel much calmer and more focused on things ahead.

While he had been gone the workers he had hired to work on his house had started and the place was slowly starting to look somewhat decent again. New furniture, new paint on the walls. He stayed in the house for almost three weeks overseeing the renovation and during that time he also hired a couple of servants to take care of his estate. He needed someone to work in the garden, cook for him and keep the house neat and clean. He wanted to make it a home again, and it was going in the right direction. Thranduil was even hopeful enough to redecorate a room just for Legolas. He chose soft shades of blue and green just as he knew Legolas liked it. He had hopes that one day, maybe far in the future, but still, his son would want to come and stay with him at least for a while now and then.

When he finally felt that he had done everything he could at his house he felt the urge to continue where he had left at The Island, searching for Glorfindel who he was almost certain was the one elf that had built the platform in the tree.

There was one thing that he hadn't researched yet, and not for lack of motivation; the mysterious book his neighbor Elaron had given him. The blue book that belonged in the world of The Island. Clearly there was a purpose with it being here, on this side, and finding its way to him. He really needed to know what was written on the pages, but in order to know that he had to find someone that could read the alphabet of the other world and perhaps also speak their language. How he would do that was a mystery. He sighed.

This time Thranduil packed with care before making the crossing to The Island. He was planning on staying for quite some time and he suspected that if the owners of the yellow house would show up at all it would probably be this time of the year. He chose discrete green clothing that would blend in with the forest and make him even harder to detect.

Arriving at The Island he immediately felt that something was different about the place. The trees seemed almost cheerful like as if something really good had happened. The Big Oak told him what he had suspected was true. The owner of The Island had arrived. He could not help feeling suspicious, but at least it was a good thing that the trees seemed to like the person that had arrived. Now he just had to be a bit more careful, even if elves could remain unseen most of the time ,and humans were not the most observant creatures, Thranduil still wanted to very much remain undetected.

Thranduil delighted in the fact that it was summer, real summer, and not the static, never changing summer of Valinor. He made his way around The Island carefully, looking out for the human. Still no sign of him or her, but there was a boat by the pier now and he could see the door to the yellow house wide open. The owner was inside, he guessed and took some time to eat some fresh wild strawberries growing next to his feet. He had always liked wild strawberries, just like his son Legolas. But the small berries didn't grow in Valinor. That meant he hadn't tasted them for thousands of years. He closed his eyes and imagined being back in Greenwood on a sunny midsummer afternoon. The taste of the berries almost made it seem real.

Thranduil's sensitive elf ears picked up the sound of strange music from the house. He didn't like it at first, but after a while it grew on him. Still no sign of the human. The music sounded synthetic,but instead of telling a story as all songs at home did, this was more like a stream of feelings modeled into rhythm and sound. He soon became quite captivated by it, and in a way it suited his personality much better than the endless tales of long lost battles and forgotten bravery of his own people.

The afternoon had turned into evening when the human suddenly stepped out of the door. He was a tiny bit surprised to see it was a woman. A tall woman with unruly golden blond curls, dressed in a long white dress of some kind. She was carrying a bottle in one of her hands and some kind of device from where the music originated in the other.

To Thranduil mortals had never been something that he had gotten close to on a personal level. They could be his enemies, his trading partners or his allays, but never anything other than that. Never his friends, family or lovers. They were like never ending waves upon the shores of is eternal life, a sea of ever changing faces. There one day, gone the next. He had never understood the way Legolas had closely befriended hobbits, men and even dwarfs. The only thing that kind of friendship brought in the end was grief.

The woman was young. Probably around twenty years old. Young even by human standards. She was a scrawny thing. Too thin for his taste, but still he hated to admit that some part of him found her intriguing. She had started to dance slowly to the music and the way she moved was uncharacteristically graceful for a human. Her feet seemed to flow over the white sand.

He shook his head as he watched her. He had gone far too long without the touch of a willing elleth. That was the only possible explanation. She might have a flawless face and moves like an elleth, but she was still a human. He shook his head and pushed the thoughts of the girls superficial qualities aside when she suddenly turned her head and looked in his direction, like she knew she was being watched.

He stopped breathing for a moment. There was no way she could see him where he was hidden, and he hadn't made a sound, at least not a sound that her weak human ears could have picked up. She stared in his direction for a while then shook her head, turned around and resumed her dancing while Thranduil slowly moved away and headed back in the direction of the platform.

He felt confused when he ate his evening meal. To clear his mind he opened up a bottle of his favorite wine and took a few sips. This night was very warm and the thick smell of salty water mixed with fresh grass and roses filled his nose. He did not dare to light the lantern he had brought to his platform, afraid that the woman would somehow see it. Her senses seemed incredibly sharp for a human and that meant he had to be careful, unless he didn't want to be found. Maybe he did?

He run his fingers over the strange little book. Meeting the human had presented him with a whole new possibility. He needed someone to teach him how to read the book, and maybe, just maybe she was the one. He was very unsure about how to take things further, so he simply settled for observing her for a while to see if reveling himself was a good idea.

Early the next morning he got up and went fishing. He hurried with lighting a fire on the beach and cooked the two fishes he had caught before putting out the fire and covering the fireplace with a thick layer of sand. After that he circled the yellow house a few times. All the doors were shut, but a window on the second floor was open. The house was silent. She slept until late he assumed.

Almost at noon the woman finally emerged from the house with a cup in her hand and dressed in something that could only be described as small patches of fabric covering up her breasts and private parts. The idea of the garments seemed rather pointless to him, she might just as well be naked. He cursed himself when his imagination started playing tricks on him. She was human after all. Maybe a uncharacteristically attractive human, but still, Thranduil Oropherion would never touch a human woman.

She drank the content of her cup, and after that she walked down to the beach and out in the water. She swam for quite a while, and suddenly Thranduil felt the urge to do the same. After her swim she went back to the terrace and picked up a small gadget that she touched and suddenly started speaking into. It was then he realized that she actually spoke westron. She had a very strange way of pronouncing the words, but he could still understand everything she said.

The whole thing made him more sure. He had to contact her in some way. If the blue book was written in westron but simply in another alphabet she would be the key to finding out what the text meant. He just had to find out how to approach her. Most likely he would half scare her to death if he suddenly showed up out of the blue, but maybe that was a chance he had to take?

The rest of the day he kept to himself up in the platform trying to figure out what to do. He walked quite a few laps around the tree trunk and after that he climbed higher up in the tree above the platform. He had a spectacular view of the sea and the island from here, but it still didn't make it easier for him to focus. He climbed a bit further up, until he could feel the branches crumbling under his weight. It would be impossible to go higher up. He found a birds nest filled with blue eggs, but also something else.

Carefully bound to the tree trunk and attached with additional nails was a small box made from some kind of a strange red material. It looked old and fragile and it didn't take much of an effort for him to remove it. He slowly opened it and inside he found one thing; Something that looked like a key made of black stone. It had strange inscriptions on it and it looked absolutely ancient. Not only did it look old and strange, it also made his skin crawl in a way he hadn't felt in a very, very long time.


	10. Pointed Ears and Kitchen Knives

**I've been writing fast..Since a few of my reviewers seemed to be quite anxious to know what happens next in the story ;)**

**Thank you all for the new reviews and follows! Happy you like the story so far.**

Cara was sure she had seen something again. A flash of white blond hair moving in the tree line behind the house. She had a kitchen knife under her pillow now, and a few others in other strategic places around the house. If the freak wanted to do her any harm she would be up to the challenge. She would not give up without a fight.

It had all started the first night at The Island with the nagging feeling that someone was watching her. At that time it was just a feeling, but the next morning at the terrace she could feel it again, and this time she got a glimpse of blond hair and could hear the sound of breathing. Too bad for that asshole, he had picked the wrong girl to stalk.

Cara had to admit that her heightened senses sometimes could make her nearly mad, especially her unnaturally sharp hearing, but in cases like this it was only an advantage. She had to admit the guy was good at sneaking around thought. He moved extremely fast and quietly, more like a hunting animal than a human being and until last night she had not seen him fully.

She had turned off the lights and hid behind the curtains in her bedroom. She had waited for hours careful not to make a sound or even breath on the curtain to make it move. She had a feeling that this guy was not someone to be easily fooled and that he was exactly as sharp tuned as she was. But maybe not as smart. She smiled maliciously.

The moon was out and suddenly there he was. He was huge, probably around two meters tall with broad shoulders and long, straight white blond hair. He was dressed very strangely, in something that looked like a costume from some kind of a historical movie. He also looked a lot more intimidating than she had had imagined, and it made her heart beat faster.

She looked down for a second at the phone in her hand, and when she looked up again he was gone without a trace. She considered calling the police, but something held her back. Instead she slowly moved back from the window and crawled into bed hugging her pillow. She was sure she had locked all doors and closed all the windows but still she didn't get any sleep that night.

This morning she didn't have her coffee on the terrace, and she most certainly didn't go out in her bikini. Who knew if this guy was some kind of pervert jerking off in the bushes at the sight of her?! She certainly didn't want to provide more food for his imagination if that was the case.

Once again she thought of calling the police. But again something held her back, and suddenly she realized why. Maybe all of this wasn't real. Maybe she was starting to get delusional too, just like her mother. Hadn't Evelyn explained to her a million times that the illness was genetic. Perhaps she wasn't seeing strangely dressed blond men running around her house at night spying on her, maybe it was just something her own paranoid mind made up?

She was tired of the lack of sleep last night and made another cup of coffee and a sandwich. It was a cloudy day today, and that meant she could keep inside, cleaning or writing on her book and she wouldn't have to face the psycho out in the open. Still she kept her phone and a knife close to her in case he would decide to break in and attack her.

The morning went on fast and Cara found a lot to do inside. The house had been empty for a few years and because of the coming party all the rooms had to be neat and clean. While she cleaned she also made notes about what she needed to buy for each room. In a few new curtains would look good and in others new carpets were necessary. It was a large house and cleaning it was the best excuse for her not to confess she was to scared to go out.

At four she made herself a salad and ate it slowly by the kitchen table followed by a large latte. She had even dared to open the door to let some fresh air in and carried out some of the rugs on the terrace. Then he suddenly was there standing like a solid wall in front of the door cutting of her escape route and casting a dark shadow the reached all the way to the table. The worst thing was that she hadn't even heard him coming, she had been so concentrated on her latte and he had been so quiet. Cara could do nothing else than to scream on top of her lungs and grab the kitchen knife she had next to her on the table.

"Do not come anywhere near me, or I swear I will kill you!" Cara backed a few steps while the psycho in front of her held his hands up like he was showing her that he was unarmed.

"I do not mean you any harm. I just want to talk to you."

He had a strong accent and his voice was deep and melodic and didn't at all sound the way she pictured that a psychotic murderer would sound. Still she was not the one to be fooled easily.

"About what? I know you have been sneaking around the house spying on me for days now. Who the hell are you and what do you want from me?"

Cara was still waving the kitchen knife but the man in front of her didn't seem to be much intimidated by that fact. Instead something that seemed like irritation crossed his features and his blue eyes stared straight into hers.

"Believe me My Lady, if I truly wanted to hurt you I would have done so already. I am not here to harm you, simply to ask for your help."

Without a word he simply pulled out a chair and sat down right in front of Cara.

"If you still want to stab me with that knife, I suggest you do so. I would have little chance to defend myself."

Something about him told Cara that that was probably not true. Somehow he did not strike her as the type that was ever complety defenseless, but on the other hand there was also a sincerity in his eyes that she simply could not dismiss. Perhaps he really needed her help for some reason. She slowly sighed and lowered the knife. He would get his chance at explaining himself, and she would listen.

"Ok, but remember that if you start misbehaving in any way I will call the police. And drop that whole "My Lady" thing. I am most certainly not your lady!"

The man on the chair looked like a giant question mark. But nodded.

"I did not mean to offend you..."

"Cara, my name is Cara. What is yours?"

"Thranduil" he simply answered.

She felt her heart rate slow down. He did have a very odd name, but he did not seem bout to make any sudden movements. That was good. She dropped the knife on the table and shook her head when she noticed that she had spilled her latte over the table in the general confusion after Thranduil had showed up.

"Damn it" she said, a situation like this called for something to drink.

"Would you like something to drink? A latte perhaps?" she asked Thranduil. Cara was not really sure what the hell she was doing, asking if a guy she nearly stabbed with a kitchen knife wanted a latte, but she figured he had a lot of explaining to do, and why not do it over a drink. Besides, she wanted one herself, and she could not help feeling relieved that he was actually real and not a paranoid delusuion.

The more she looked at Thranduil, the less scared she was. There was something about him that was just, well not evil, perhaps. She was always getting vibes about people around her, and even if he had scared her half to death the feeling she got from him now was good. Perhaps he really only wanted her help with something, just as he said?

" Latte? I'm not familiar with that drink." He looked slightly confused.

"Really? Wine then?" She really could use a glass herself instead of coffee. Rather something that relaxed her than something that winded her up even more.

He nodded and for the first time she detected something like a smile on his lips. She also noticed that he was very handsome, or perhaps beautiful would be a more correct term. She would rate him a nine out of ten, most probably. Not many guys would get such a high score... She cursed herself for even thinking about something like that.

"Yes, please. Some wine would be nice."

She poured two glasses of white wine and gave one of them to Thranduil. From the way he handled the glass and tasted the drink it was quite evident that this guy was a wine enthusiast. Who could have guessed that the strangely dressed weirdo sneaking around on her private property shared an interest with her.

"It is a very good wine." He said and smiled.

"One of my favorites." She said. "Not to ruin the mood, but could you please tell me the reason why you are sneaking around on my property, and why you want my help?"

He sighed and seemed to be thinking carefully over what to say next.

"I am here looking for a person that went missing from the place I come from. I have my reasons to believe that he came here, to this Island, but then the track ends. Or, it will end unless I can read a document that I believe may contain some answers about what happened to him. I need your help to teach me how to read your alphabet."

Thranduil pushed a strand of his long blond hair behind his ear, and it was then that Cara noticed that it wasn't a regular ear. He had pointed ears!


	11. The Second Key

A new chapter for you...

Last week was filled with stuff to do, and the whole fan fic writing thing has been something I had to leave until today when I finally managed to produce a new chapter. Hope you enjoy it and thank you very much for all the reviews.

**Deception is Decepticon:** Happy you enjoy the story. The input on my grammar and spelling is also helpful. Some other reviewer also commented on me writing "tho" earlier, but I was just a bit too lazy to do anything about it until now. By now chap. 1-3 should (hopefully) be completely "tho" free, and I'll keep editing later chapters as well.

**Kirschflower: **Thank you =) My mission is in fact to create a story that is slightly different and, if I may say, less cheesy than a lot of other adventure/elf romance stories you can find. Glad you like it.

**Nowa1:** Thank you!

**CuriousOysters: **Oh, that means a lot to me. Thank you =)

Legolas first weeks in New Imladris had been rather uneventful but pleasant. Elrond had been very generous and given Legolas not only a job as an archery instructor but also a small apartment for him and his son.

They each had a small bedroom and shared a sitting room and a bathroom. It was nothing compared to the luxury of the house in Valmar, but Legolas didn't miss any of it. He was just happy he had some place to live and something meaningful to do. Fëanáro also seemed to be adjusting very well, and the little boy was over the moon because of all the new friends he had made. There were quite a few elflings in New Imladris and Fëanáro and Elrohirs son Elros had very fast become the best of friends. Elros and Fëanáro were only born two years apart and shared the same enthusiasm for both swordplay and mischief.

This very morning Legolas slowly woke up from a night of pleasant dreams when his son tried to pull off his blanket.

"Ada, ada, are you hurt? You were making strange noises!" The little elfling demanded to know.

"No, no. Ada just had a bad dream." He said groggily. The truth was that his dream was not a bad one at all. It just happened to involve a naked elleth doing very, very naughty things to him, but he could not tell that to his son.

"May I go out and play with Elros?" Fëanáro looked at him with his big innocent blue eyes and Legolas nodded. He better nod, because if he didn't Fëanáro would surely have one of his famous temper tantrums. Then he screamed loud enough to wake up all of New Imladris, something Elrond and Erestor joked about to no end.

"It's almost like having old King Thranduil in the building..." Erestor laughed when Fëanáro screamed in anger and pulled Legolas hair a few days ago. Legolas had to admit that Fëanáro had very much in common with his grandfather, not only the temper, but the looks as well. Legolas still loved his son very much, he was most of the time a very happy, intelligent and kind elfling, but obeying his father was not something that came without a fight.

Today was Legolas day off and he was almost happy when his son disappeared to find his friend. He would have a bit more time to relax before getting out of bed. No eager archery students to occupy his time today and obviously no son to entertain. That left him with one thing to do, think about his father. It was not something he'd rather not do, but every time he had nothing to do his mind started to wander and ended up with analyzing his last meeting with Thranduil.

His father had seemed so different that it almost made him suspicious. Did he have some hidden agenda or had he really changed for the better? He highly doubted that he had changed, but still... Why would Thranduil suddenly felt the urge to apologize to him when they had lived thousands of years side by side without him ever showing a single sign of having any kind of sympathy or compassion for Legolas? Maybe Erestor indeed had a point? Perhaps Legolas had something to learn from Fëanáro? The fact that his son was rather a lot like his father made him think a bit more about the fact that once, before everything bad happened, Thranduil also had a soft side that he had just lost touch with for a long time. Maybe his father had reclaimed that side lately ,somehow, and was indeed sorry. Perhaps Legolas should give him a second chance?

Legolas sighed and got himself ready for breakfast. Outside the weather was as sunny as usual in Valinor and in the gardens some elves were quietly reading or walking around. Some elflings were also running around playing and they all greeted him cheerfully when he passed them. In New Imladris everyone was familiar with the legends of his deeds during the war of the ring and getting the famous Legolas as their archery instructor had been something special for many an elfling. He was glad he could inspire his students, and deep down he was a bit flattered that people idolized him. That had never happened in Valmar. There he had been close to nothing, just a husband of a wealthy elleth. A specimen from some barbaric realm in Middle Earth that no one really cared about.

Many times he had wondered if it was all for nothing. The elves had helped defending Middle Earth from evil at great coast just to disappear to The Undying Lands a few hundred years later. A place that most people did not care about any of the struggles they had endured back in their homeland. Middle Earth was indeed his homeland, and the longer he spend in Valinor the more he realized that fact.

The dining hall in New Imladris was a mirror image of the dining hall in Middle Earth. This time in the morning only a hand full of elves were still having breakfast and Legolas served himself some newly baked bread, fruits and a big cup of tea. He spotted Elrohir sitting by a table eating bread and cheese and decided to join his friend. Since their sons had found each other they had also spent a lot of time together.

The mellowness that Legols had detected in Elrohir was still there, but his company had brightened up the other elf a lot. Still the loss of his brother weighed heavy on Elrohir, and today Legolas could see he was more distant than usual. Elrohir still managed a smile when Legolas sat down beside him with his breakfast.

"Good morning my friend." Legolas sat down.

"Good morning to you too, Legolas."

The two elves ate in silence for a moment. Legolas was starving and this particular morning the bread seemed to taste better than usual. Maybe it was the pleasant dream he had about the elleth that had made him so hungry? He had not even dared to look at a female since the divorce, so maybe this was a good sign?

"My father and I would like to speak to you later, when you have finished with your breakfast. I heard you were going to Valmar later this week to sort some things out with your former wife, and if it is not too much trouble for you there is a small favor we would like to ask of you."

Legolas nodded, his mouth still filled with bread.

"That is no trouble at all, I assure you. Whatever I can do to help." He finally said when he had swallowed the last of the bread along with some tea.

"Good." Elrohir smiled.

After breakfast Elrohir lead Legolas to Elronds study where the elf lord was working together with Erestor as usual. The room was not very tidy and filled with old books, but it had a familiar feel to it that Legolas liked. Elrohir closed the door behind them, and Elrond looked up from the scroll he was currently reading.

"Legolas, how delightful! How are you finding your stay in New Imladris so far?"

"I feel very much at home My Lord, and so does my son. We very much like it here."

"Good. That is very good. I have a small favor to ask you, as Elrohir might have told you already."

Legolas nodded.

"Erestor, show Legolas the key."

Erestor moved across the room to a shelf and returned with a wooden box that he reluctantly opened. Inside, on a cushion of red velvet rested something that looked like a black stone key. A very weird black stone key that looked ancient and was covered with some kind of symbols. For some reason Legolas felt no desire to touch the key, instead he just looked at it.

"You feel it too don't you?" Elrond lifted an eyebrow and looked Legolas.

"I don't like that thing. What is it?"

"That is what we don't know. But I don't like it either, it is evil, that is what my instincts tell me. This key, or whatever it might be, was left behind by my son Elladan. He had hidden it before he disappeared, and Elrohir found it a few days ago when he went to pick up some books from Elladans old room. I have studied it ever since, but the symbols on the key are like nothing I ever seen before. I can not even tell what it is made from, but I do know that I need the answers to that. This is where you come in Legolas."

Legolas nodded.

"Since you are going to Valmar you will take the key with you. As far as I know there is only one person in Valinor that might have an answer to my questions, and you will speak to her."


	12. The Lesson

**This time I did write a new chapter a bit faster...Lucky you ;) Thanks for the reviews btw. **

This was the second night in a row that Cara was tossing and turning in her bed because of him. The man, or elf, called Thranduil. Cara was sweating and the pillow she hugged felt sticky against her body. It was hot outside, and even hotter inside the house. He did have a point when he said he preferred sleeping outside this time of the year. She wondered where he slept on the Island.

It was not that she was afraid of him anymore, he had nothing but treated her with respect, and deep down she knew that he was right. If he had wanted to hurt her he'd done so already. She sighed. That was the good thing, she supposed. On the other hand the rest he had told her, and the possibilities it presented were more than a little scary for more than one reason.

Cara checked her mobile. 05.34. She might as well get up. There was no use trying to sleep anymore. She got out of bed and watched her reflection in the mirror. She had always been the one that could go on with just a little sleep, but after two nights up she didn't feel very fresh at all. The T-shirt she had been sleeping in was sticking to her body in places and her hair was a mess. Her muscles also felt tense and her lower back was aching. She mentally noted that the bed in this room needed to be changed into something better.

Looking at herself made her feel slightly metaphysical. What was really going on in her life? Was this even real? Was Thranduil real? It dawned to her that she hadn't even touched him to find out, and that meant that in theory she had no real evidence that he existed. When he first came into the house she had been almost relieved, because that was proof she hadn't been making the "whole weirdo running around her property" thing. But then, then he had started telling her that he was from another world, and that he was an elf, and he had told it to her like it was just as natural as the sun rising each morning.

An elf from another world that wanted to learn how to read. For all she knew his ears could be fake. Weren't some people really good with latex and make up? Like all the special effects in movies. They had looked like real skin though. The only way to find out would really be to touch them, but one did not just jump up and touch a strangers ears, especially not on their first meeting.

Cara sighed and walked to the bathroom, pulled off her T-shirt and stepped into the shower. She let the warm water relax her muscles and used several scented body scrubs and shower gels before she finally realized that the warm water was used up almost completely. Weren't elves supposed to be small, green, somewhat ugly creatures by the way? Not, well, good looking guys with ridiculously long hair who didn't seem to have missed a single workout in their lives?

Cara sighed and started working her legs with body lotion. Thranduil hadn't seemed to find her attractive at all though. Why she even cared or thought about that made her slightly angry. She was used to men taking every opportunity to flirt with her, and even if she usually knew that most guys just wanted to fuck her because she had a pretty face and a nice body, and she hated them for that, she was a bit disappointed this time. Perhaps her tits were too small for him? And why the hell did she even think about this at all? She made a face at herself in the mirror and got dressed.

In the kitchen everything was as usual and Cara opened the door to the terrace to let in some fresh air while the coffeemaker worked on her morning espresso. It was too early to eat, at least according to Cara, but she checked the fridge anyway and came to the conclusion that she needed to go into town to buy more food. Especially now that she had invited Thranduil over at noon to start his reading lessons. Why the hell had she even agreed to that? But on the other hand she had felt that he really needed help, and she was not exactly known to be the one making the most rational decisions.

A few hours later, when the shops had opened in Cara took the boat over to town. She went crazy in the local supermarket and bought food and booze to last for at least two weeks even if she would probably return to town in a few days time anyway. When she returned to the Island she mentally cursed herself for not buying slightly less. Carrying the shopping bags from the boat was a pain in the ass.

At 11.30 Cara was finally done with unpacking the groceries and making food for her and Thranduil. If elves even ate normal food? But he had liked the wine yesterday, so probably he ate some kind of food as well. She had made a fruit salad and baked a couple of baguettes in the oven. She also had a selection of cheeses she had bought in the supermarket. If the elf wouldn't eat this she would eat alone and he would be missing out on something good.

She came to think about something that she had forgotten a long time ago. The fact that her mother's doctors had said that she had delusions about elves. Cara had always assumed that it had meant those green small elves, but now she was not sure anymore. Perhaps her mother had indeed met an elf just like Thranduil here on the Island? The possibility made Cara shiver. Thranduil was looking for another elf that he claimed had disappeared from this very Island, didn't he?

Cara took a sip of her mineral water and nearly dropped the glass when she heard Thranduil's voice behind her. Again he had been sneaking up behind her and scared her half to death.

"Good day Cara." He said.

"Good day to you too. Could you please stop sneaking up on me like that. It is really scary."

"Very well. I will do as you wish." This time Thranduil smiled a big smile and Cara noticed that his teeth was wickedly white and perfect. She couldn't help liking that.

"I've made some food for us, and I was thinking we could eat and start the reading lesson out on the terrace. I mean the weather is good and all."

"Fine by me." Thranduil answered.

"Could you please help me carry the food out before we start? Take this." Cara handed over the bowl with fruit salad to a confused Thranduil that frankly looked more than a little annoyed with Cara ordering him around. But at least he said nothing, just carried the bowl out on the terrace.

So this one was spoiled. Cara smiled evilly to herself. It seemed like Thranduil was not used to doing this kind of stuff himself,or at least not being ordered around. Perhaps he came from a rich family that had servants taking care of most practical things at home? Or maybe he was a bit of a chauvinist and thought that it was women who should do the serving? One thing was clear though. In this house things didn't quite work that way, and if he wanted to hang out here he had a few things to learn.

When they ate Thranduil seemed a lot more happy. It was at least clear from the start that elves seemed to have the same eating habits as humans, and Thranduil complimented on everything from the cheeses to the bread. He seemed curious about the fruits in the salad and Cara tried her best to teach him the names and origins of the once that were new to him. Both banana and pineapple he had never heard of before, but the strawberries he claimed to be favorites from his homeland.

They ended lunch with a cup of tea before starting their lesson and Cara concluded that they had spent nearly two hours just eating and talking. Thranduil was very easygoing and she caught herself thinking that she liked his company. He might be a bit old fashioned at times when she spoke, but frankly she kind of like it a bit. He was very polite and refined, and that was something she missed in guys over here.

Still he had rarely said a word about himself. She did not know if he perhaps had a family back home, a girlfriend, a wife, what he did for a living or how old he was, but on the other hand she hadn't told him much about herself either, so she decided to take a step back and see if the subject was something that would come up naturally later.

She started by teaching him the alphabet. Thranduil seemed to pick up things quickly but writing with the ballpoint pen seemed to be a bit of a challenge for him. He held it awkwardly in the beginning and did not seem to push it hard enough against the paper to make any lines. Cara found it slightly comical, and that seemed to irritate Thranduil. Clearly he wasn't the kind of person that people dared to laugh at where he was from, Cara concluded. The amusement didn't last for long though,pretty soon Thranduil had got the hang of using the pen and was neatly writing down letters and simple words on the paper.

"I am used to writing with ink and a quill." He said.

"I figured that much." Cara said. "You are not used to people laughing at you. Am I correct about that too."

"Yes you are. I was a king once, and anyone who dared laugh at me would end up in my dungeon." He said it with a smile, but Cara knew that behind it all he was dead serious.

"Are you not a king now?"

"No. Not anymore." Thranduil stared into the nothingness.

In that very moment Cara thought he looked like a very old, and sad man despite his beautiful and youthful appearance. She didn't want to ask anything more, because she knew that somehow talking about his past had upset him. Cara could understand and relate to that, she was the same when someone mentioned certain things from her past.

A thick silence ruled the terrace for a few minutes before Cara picked up a children s book that she thought would be easy to read. It was an illustrated version of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.

"I was thinking I could read this to you and you would follow the text on the pages as best as you can. I myself find that to be a quite useful way of learning. Then tomorrow, perhaps you can read it to me if we have come that far."

Thranduil nodded. And Cara started reading. Thranduil seemed rather fascinated by the dwarfs in particular and at the end he asked Cara:

"Is this a true story? If so dwarfs in your world behave and look quite differently than they do in Middle Earth."

"No" Cara said. "This is just a fairytale. A made up story for children. There are no dwarfs, at least not as in small bearded men living under the mountains. I take it things are different where you come from."

Thranduil nodded and Cara was not really that surprised at all. If Thranduil was an elf, then why would dwarfs not exist as well where he came from.

"My people have had a very strained relationship with the dwarfs for ages. Sometimes even war. Still now I have learned to accept and respect them, maybe not befriend them but my son did that instead of me. Became best friends with a dwarf."

"You have a son?" Somehow Cara felt a bit disappointed. If Thranduil had a son, then perhaps he had a wife too, and even if she hated to admit it to herself that would suck.

"Yes I have a son. His name is Legolas."

"Nice. How old is he. Do you have any other family?" Cara tested the water, and surprisingly enough Thranduil answered.

"No, it is just me and my son. He is a grown up now and has two children of his own, but I've never met the younger one. We, how should I put it, had a fallout Legolas and I. We don't speak very often."

In that moment Cara could truly see that Thranduil was a very lonely elf, and had perhaps been so for a long time. For some reason it made her see him as even more beautiful than before. Maybe because she was lonely too? Still she didn't like the heavy atmosphere and wanted to cheer things up a bit.

" Tell me about it. I have a sister, and we always argue. Right now we are not really on talking terms either. Family can be a pain in the ass sometimes. Why don't we have a glass of wine. I think we earned it."

"Wine is never wrong." Thranduil smiled and Cara disappeared into the kitchen to return moments later with a bottle and two glasses. It was already past four and soon it would be time for dinner. She pondered if she should invite Thranduil to stay for pasta carbonara.


End file.
